Improved hotel-annunciator



i J. H. H. BENNETT.

Annunciator.

Patented Dec. 17,1861.

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71 2331 eases N. PETERS. Pholmljhugraphec Washingiolv. D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

J. H. H. BENNETT, OF HUNTS IIOLLOIV, NEW YORK.

IMPROVED HOTEL-ANNUNCIATOR.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 33,926, dated December17, 1861.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J. H. H. BENNETT, of Hunts Hollow, in the county ofLivingston and State of New York, have invented anew and ImprovedHotelAnnunciator; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the same, reference being-had to theannexed drawings, making a part of this specification, in which Figure 1is a View of the interior of my invention, showing the principal workingparts. Fig. 2 is a face view of the part of same which is placed in therooms of the hotel; Fig. 3, a section of Fig. 1, taken in the line so a;Fig. 4, a View of the part of the invention which is placed at the baror other place in the hotel most convenient for the inspection "of theclerk or waiters.

This figure is the reverse or opposite side view of Fig. 1.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the severalfigures.

The object of this invention is to obtain an annunciator for hotels bywhich the occupant of a room may make known his wants at once or at thesame time that the bell is rung for the clerk or waiter, thereby savingthe time now expended by the waiter in going to the room of the occupantin order to ascertain what is wanted.

The invention consists in the employment or use of certain mechanism soarranged and connected with a knob that as the latter is pulled oractuated by the occupant of the room a bell will be sounded anda slidemoved, the latter indicating the article desired by the occupant.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct myinvention, I will proceed to describe it.

A represents a box or frame,which contains the principal working partsof the device. This box may be placed in the vicinity of the bar or inany conspicious place in a hotel most accessible to the servants orwaiters. Within the box or frame A there is placed a central partitionto, to which the mechanism is attached.

B is a rod, which is secured to the back side of the partition a in aninclined position, and on this rod a slide 0 is fitted and allowed tomove freely back and forth. To the side of this slide next to thepartition a there is at tached by a pivot b, a plate D, said pivotpassing through the plate near its lower end. To the lower end of theplate D there is attached a cord 0, which passes around a drum E, saiddrum having a coil-spring within it which has a tendency to keep theslide 0 and plate D at the lower end of the rod B. To the upper part ofthe plate D there is secured a pin (1, which projects toward thepartition a, as shown clearly in Fig. 3.

To the back side of the partition a there is secured a series ofparallel plates (2, which are at equal distances apart and placed in anoblique line corresponding with the rod B, as shown in Fig. 1. Betweenthe plates e there are placed small bars f, each of which is providedwith a neck or projection g. These necks or projections pass throughslots h, which are made in the partition a, and are connected to slidesF at the front or face side of the partition a. The slots h, as will beseen by referring to Fig. 1, are parallel with each other, of equallength, and have the same relative position with each other as theplates 6 and bars f.

0n the front side of the partition a, behind the slides F, the names ofthe several articles generally required in a bed-room are painted ormarked in any suitable way, so as to be plainly seen when the slides areshoved at one side. Instead of the whole name being used an initialletter might answer, or signs and characters may be employed to indicatethe several articles. The number of the room may be put on one end ofthe slides F, and

these numbers, when the slides are closed,

are concealed by an inclined plate G. (See Fig. 4.)

At the back side of the partition athere is a bar H, which has aninclined position corresponding to the rod B, and is connected to theparallel bars 9 g, the upper ends of which are pivoted to the partitiona, as shown at h h. The pivot h extends through the partition a, and hasa crank z'atits outer end, and aspring j is connected to the bar 9, saidspring having a tendency to keep the bar H out from the plates e and rodB.

I is a bell, which is secured to the back side of the partition a, and Jis a hammer which, when actuated strikes the bell I. The hammer J isattached to a rod or lever K, which has its fulcrum at k. The rod orlever K has wire an attached to it.

a spring Z connected withit, which spring has a tendency to keep the endof therod orlever in contact with one end of the lowermost plate 6. (SeeFig. 1.)

The upper part of the slide C has a cord or This cord or wire 011,extends upward through one side of the box or frame A, leads into theroom of the occupant, and is attached to a slide L, which has a knob Mconnected to it. The slide L is fitted in a guide N at one side of aplate 0, which is marked at certain points with the names of thearticles requiredin abed-room, the names corresponding with those markedon the partition a, and placed at such points on the plate 0, that whenan index-point n on the slide L is drawn down opposite a certain name onplate 0, the pin d of plate D will be drawn up in line with the barfofthe slide F, which covers the corresponding-name on the partition a.lVhen the occupant of a room, therefore desires a certain article, hegrasps the knob M, pulling it till the index-point n is opposite thename of the article wanted, and the spring of the drum E draws the pin(Z of plate D back against the barf of the slide F, which covers thename of the article desired,

and the slide will be moved so as to expose said name, and therebyindicate the article desired by the occupant. The pin d, after themovement of the slide, passes down on the opposite side of the plates eto its original position, the spring of the drum E effecting suchresult. The slide is moved back to its original position by actuatingthe bar H through the medium of the crank orhandle i. The plates 6 mightbe placed in the line of a curve or form of a circle with a guide-rod Bof corresponding form; but the operation would be substantially the sameas that herein described.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

The arrangement of the plates 6, slide C, having the plate D attached,which is provided with a pin 61 and connected with the drum E or otherspring, the slide L of the knob M, the bell I, and the slides F,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

J. H. H. BENNETT.

Witnesses: I

J. YATES BENNETT, ELIJAH DUNN.

